Administrators close 31 Sanity stores

BDO Stoy Hayward, handling administration for the retail operation, says 160 members of staff have been affected by the closure programme, which came into effect on Monday. 75 stores continue to trade within the chain.

BDO adds its "final negotiations" with a number of parties either looking at the business, which is registered under the name Our Price Entertainment (UK) on leasehold properties. In a statment it adds, "Unfortunately there has been no expression of interest in a number of sites and therefore, to ensure that the joint administartors retain value in the core busineess, it is necessary to implement a closure programme involving 31 of the stores."

The chain, which has had four different owners over the past five years, was placed in administration in November a couple of months after Australian retailer Sanity slod it to a new set-up called Primemist fronted by businnessman Lee Skinner.